Recently, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer announced that it believed cell phones were a “possible” carcinogen – a substance and exposure that can lead to cancer.
Asbestos, diesel engine exhaust and tobacco smoking are examples of known carcinogens, according to the American Cancer Society’s web site. According to the World Health Organization’s report, cell phone use could potentially fit on such a list due to the radiation they produce.
Here to discuss this hotly debated issue is IU Health Physicians neuro-oncologist Stephanie Wagner, M.D., co-medical director of Indiana University School of Medicine’s Neuro-oncology Program at IU Simon Cancer Center and IU Health Methodist Hospital – the only program of its kind in Indiana.
What was your reaction when you read the WHO’s recent report identifying cell phone use as a “possible” cause of cancer?
I wasn’t surprised. It can take a long time to come to a strong conclusion as to whether cell phone use is, in fact, a carcinogen (cancer-causing agent). We really won’t have a definitive answer for several more years.
How concerned should people be about the risk of cell phones and brain cancer?
I think it’s too early to know for sure. The recent announcement by the World Health Organization was not based on any new data, but a recommendation after reviewing several previously reported studies. In the last decade, more than 20 studies have been done exploring a possible connection between cell phones and cancer and they’re all conflicting.
The risk is still not completely known and the research is mixed. It’s also important to understand that many of these studies analyze a few years worth of data, and many known carcinogens can take decades to show a causative effect. The jury is still out on this issue.
How do cell phones effect children’s brains?
As with adults, there have been conflicting animal and humans studies regarding the effects of electromagnetic radiation on children’s brains. At the present time, there are no direct studies looking at the risk of cell phone use in children and the development of brain tumors.
Some studies suggest that children exposed to electromagnetic radiation (similarly found in cell phones) absorb up to twice as much as adults and that the radiation can cross or affect the entire brain of children versus a specific area in adults. A few studies suggest electromagnetic radiation exposure leads to cell instability and possibly genetic instability and that children are more at risk because their brains are still developing.
To contact Dr. Wagner call (317) 962-3172. For more information, visit iuhealth.org/neuroscience.
Health Tip
Even though research is still being done on this topic, there are things you can do to protect yourself. Reduce any potential risk by using a headset, an earpiece or to put your cell phone on speaker mode whenever possible.
